Possession: Dark Time
by Phoenixflame
Summary: As suggested, I've condensed my Utena stories into Possession... especially since the muses are biting again. Recently completed: Mitsuru's first duel.
1. Setting Up The Board

Disclaimer: Nope. Don't own Utena. I bow to the masters.  
  
  
Anthy POV:  
  
  
Sometimes at night, the roses seem to glow under the moonlight, like blood lit by some internal shimmering light. Those are the red ones of course. Then the white ones, the ones that my prince loved, shimmer like they want to imitate moonlight.  
  
It's at these times that I feel closest to her.  
  
My brother took her from me. Forced me to betray her, so the power of the Prince could be sealed up again in the castle. He couldn't take it from her after she won it, after all. So. The cycle begins again. Except this time, they don't have a witch for a Rose Bride. They have a young and naive girl who would do anything for her brother. She's learning now, no doubt.  
  
And my brother is dead as well. I felt his death in this very garden, and afterwards, I dreamed it. Kiryuu-san pushed him to his death from the high tower. It's so easy to slip up there... especially just after a rainfall. Too convenient for End of the World. Too easy, and too ironic. So sure of himself, only to be killed by his student. Careless.  
  
Almost as careless of him to make his sister the Rose Bride. His sister who hated me. His sister who seems deceptively weak and broken. She was weak before. But she was a Duellist. She had the same inner fire as the rest of them, a warriors spirit. If he thinks he can chain her forever, he's sadly mistaken. Shallow though she was when she began, she understands far more than she lets on.  
  
But she doesn't understand what the Rose Bride is, or what she can become. She has the powers, the instincts, but not the empathy. It's what will ruin Kiryuu-san's bid for power in the end. Or she will break under it all, despite her strong spirit. And he will find another, and another, until he has what he wants.  
  
This must not happen.  
  
There is a pond in the center of this garden, surrounded by water plants, with a carefully placed stone bench. The moon seems to make the water like a mirror.  
  
So, I, clad in a red sundress the color of the gown I wore as Rose Bride, sit beside the pool. I am no longer the Rose Bride. My hands are no longer tied, and I owe allegiance to no one but the Prince. And she is not here. Not here to see this.  
  
Ohtori is covered in a sort of mystical haze. It is another world, almost, and it's so far away from where I am now. But my need is strong. The magic is strong as well. Hopefully it will be strong enough.   
  
I lift the pink blossom, and cup it in both hands. The familiar scent drifts up, and the air around me seems to still as I tear the petals from the blossom, tossing them into the water. Then I clasp the stem of the rose tightly between my hands, and I squeeze.  
  
The thorns dig into my skin. Meaningless pain, compared to what I have felt, but it elicits a single gasp from me.  
  
The stream of crimson red blood falls from my hands into the water, but I am diving after it, into a world not this one, circumventing the protections my brother threw up to keep unwanted 'guests' out. This is only the first barrier, though.  
  
My brother was a sorcerer as well. He kept demons in the deepest vaults of Ohtori. If Kiryuu-san is lucky, and wise, he will never attempt the twisted labyrinth beneath the school grounds. It will bring his death, or far worse.  
  
The demons seem like shadows when first seen, but they are all too real, manifesting sharp claws and teeth, howling and throwing the might of their power against me. I lift my hands, and call forth the power. No sword, for I am not a duellist, but a wall of silvery-red light, shutting them off before they can reach me.  
  
Then the complex mystical lock. My brother protected every single one of his precious coffins with his precious souls inside, locking up the duellists and his puppets safer than his Rose Bride.  
  
Some of them are worth it. Like this one.  
  
The runes slide into position, and I am in, throwing quick strands of silvery-red around him, weaving a cocoon of rose petals about him. The demons are howling; soon they will break through my barrier, but it no longer matters.  
  
I have what I came for. And getting out is far easier than getting in.  
  
I am a spirit with wings, singing through the ether, trailing the cocoon behind me, and then diving up into my body, letting the cocoon fall.  
  
Then I am sitting, hands clenching the sharp edges of the stone bench. But the pain is meaningless, for the man floating on the surface of the pool, surrounded by rose petals of all colors, is what I have search for. The man who challenged my brother before, and lost. The man who would have ended it, as I wished, and the man who will fire the first shot. My Bishop.  
  
He is painfully thin, and his uniform is faded. The remains of the rose on his breast have dried, and even as a wind comes, it is carried away. The wind barely stirs his shoulder-length pink hair, though, and his chest rises and falls.  
  
I am weak, so terribly drained, but it is worth it. I have my Bishop. And he will bring me the first of my Knights.  
  
The game has begun for the last time.  
  
***  
  
Once Mikage felt strong enough to walk and move about without collapsing in a rather undignified heap on the ground, one of the silent servants of the house came to fetch him. She waited silently, staring out the window, until he was washed and dressed, then turned and escorted him out of the manor and into the extensive gardens on the grounds.  
  
Despite himself, he recognized the familiar seal, the design. He followed the servant to an open area in the shape of a circle. The pattern of the rose seal was laid out in white and red stones, and in the center sat a delicate-looking iron-wrought table laden with settings for tea. Two chairs sat beside it. And one of them was occupied.  
  
He had been expecting a slim, cold man dressed in red, with pale lavender hair, and knowing eyes. Instead, he recoiled when he saw the white-clad, dark-skinned and purple-haired woman who he had known as the Rose Bride.  
  
"Souji-san. Please sit down." she requested, gesturing at the other chair. He took it, still staring at her. "Welcome to my manor. It is good to see you moving about again. I wasn't sure you would remain intact all the way from Ohtori."  
  
"Ohtori?" Mikage asked, bewildered. "How have I come to be here? Why..."  
  
"One question at a time." Anthy said gently. "But first, we must speak of other things." Her emerald eyes suddenly fastened on his, demanding attention and silence.   
  
Unconciously, he sat up straighter.  
  
"You know what I am. And what I was."  
  
"The Rose Bride." Reluctantly, he added "And a witch."  
  
There was a faint teasing smile about her lips as she answered "Yes. And yes." She lifted her teacup to her lips, sipped the tea within, then set the cup down on the surface with a click.  
  
"After you fell into slumber again, the duels continued. As I thought, Utena-sama won the duels. All but the last."  
  
"She fought End of the World." Mikage said resignedly. "Did she win?"  
  
"Yes." Anthy paused. "And she freed me from my brother. At a great price, though." Her face was sad as she looked down at her lap. "My brother... you know what control he had over me." He nodded curtly. "He forced me to gravely injure her in the course of the duel. Still she freed me. But she was so weak that my brother would have killed her easily. So I sealed her inside of the Castle to heal, away from the grasping hands of my brother. It has been several years since then."  
  
"She is..."  
  
"Trapped." Anthy looked unhappy. "My brother died. His student, Touga Kiryuu, betrayed him. Touga-kun killed Akio... then took his place, with his sister as the new Rose Bride."  
  
Mikage's eyes widened, but he controlled the reaction quickly, face returning to a calm mask. "I see."  
  
"Touga-kun seeks the power of the Prince. My Prince's life would be sacrificed for his lust for power. He has a measure of the powers that End of the World possessed. He has not completely mastered those yet, but he is already making his moves. He has called a new set of duellists. One of them is one of your old pupils."  
  
"Who..."  
  
"It doesn't matter. You'll know when you see him." Anthy said, leaning forwards. "I called you back for a reason, Souji-san. It is beginning again, but it may be even worse than as it was before. Touga, unlike Akio, will never truly understand Ohtori before it is too late. You and I know some of what dwells beneath Ohtori."  
  
"The consequences would be disasterous." Mikage agreed. "Very well. What is it you wish me to do?"  
  
Anthy's smile was a touch sly as she drew a wooden box from nowhere, and set it before him. She opened it, revealing a set of rose crest rings. She lifted one from the box, and he extended his hand. She slipped it on, and it settled onto the familiar place, like part of him had returned.  
  
"Then you have no choice but to revolutionize the world." she murmured, and he bowed his head in acknowledgement, face composed, eyes glittering as he drew his hand back.   
  
She rose from her seat. "The golem-maids will tend to you, until you have healed. I have provided funds, worldly possessions, and papers to convince Touga-kun to hire you. Seek the first Knight at Ohtori, then keep watch over him until he is ready to step forwards."  
  
He rose as well, and bowed. "As you will... my lady."  
  
A ghost of a smile crossed her lips, then she turned and moved away down a path into the gardens, out of his sight.  
  
  
Nanami POV:  
  
Roses. I hate roses.  
  
But it's tradition, I suppose, for the Rose bride to wear the tiara, the dress, and elaborate coiffure. It's traditional to be impaled upon the swords of the Duellists, to fall bleeding to the ground and look up at your brother, the one whom you trusted more than anything. And to see him smile with satisfaction.  
  
And so it's traditional and right that the Rose Bride take care of the roses. Water every single one of these cursed roses, just enough, feed them with the soil from the forest at the foot of the Duelling Arena, and fertilizer, musn't forget the fertilizer, and make sure to touch each and every one with a finger, just so...  
  
It's instinct. I've only done this for a month now, and it's ingrained into me, the same way the Champions of the Duels know how to draw the sword from my heart, the same way my brother easily draws unwary girls into his bed, the same way he knew how to kill Akio-san.  
  
Yes, the old Chairman is dead. Or, should I say Deputy Chairman. He left provisions of course, all nice and neat and wrapped up. Provisions required by the Board of Directors, provisions Akio-san never intended to use. But my brother is cunning. He's so very smart, and I loved him for that once. Dear brother.  
  
But then he spoke to Juri and to Miki and to Saionji, to Akio-san (we need a Rose Bride, after all, don't we?), to the spirits of those trapped in this cursed place and they came with the Thousand Swords and impaled me. Ripped out my heart and used the stolen power of the new Prince to create the Sword. The Sword of Utena. Ironic, isn't it? One of my most hated enemies... and so close to my heart now. It's not all of her, of course, just what Akio-san could squeeze out of the castle to make a new Sword from.  
  
A sword needs its sheath. The sheath requires duellists to protect her, and duellists must have something to duel for.   
  
This academy needs magic to sustain it, to draw in the new students, to call those with power to duel and give up their power, their passion to the new Prince. In the end, Utena-sama carried a piece of every single one of the Duellists with her. It's what almost allowed her to beat Akio-san. But she needed to figure out the puzzle first.  
  
The Rose Bride is chained by her power to the End of the World. Ties of blood, ties of power, ties of influence and magic. Free will? Towards the end of the duels, it is almost possible to break free. Almost. Too little, too late. Strain to hard and the chains bind you too tight. Be calm, be sweet, be nice, and step out the gates, though, and you win. You win your freedom. As Himemiya-san did.  
  
I don't know if I can ever be free.  
  
For one thing, Himemiya was born with it inside of her, the magic. It made her suited to it, and when the time came, suited to resist. Suited to make sure the power stays with her Prince until she returns. Suited to fight back, if she cares anymore.  
  
Besides, to fight this place, the powers within it, you have to accept your power. Become a power again. Become something you're not. Taint yourself.  
  
And so I clip the roses, and I play my brother's little game, and I walk with the Champion, and I scream inside, because. I. Can't. Break. Free.  
  
It hurts. Oh kami-sama, it hurts. And these thorns tear into my soul like the swords in my heart did, and I want to die. Why can't onii-sama kill me?  
  
Roses. I hate roses.  
  
  
End Part One 


	2. Placing the Knight

Disclaimer: Nope. Don't own Utena. I bow to the masters.  
  
  
"I wonder I wonder, do you know what I wonder?"  
  
"They say a brave knight is coming to slay the evil dragon!"  
  
"But wait! That's not a knight! It's just the gardener!"  
  
"Oh brave gardener, can you slay the evil dragon?"  
  
"But I'm not a gardener! I'm just a little boy!"  
  
"Well, you know what they say. Little boys have a way of growing up into knights..."  
  
*********  
  
Tsuwabuki Mitsuru had returned to Ohtori Academy, no longer a child. He stood tall in the traditional school uniform. Or rather, at the moment, he sat. On a rather uncomfortable stone bench, with no company. He was growing steadily more bored by the minute.  
  
The nearest town was fifty miles from the school, and few people on the island possessed a car in any working condition. So Tsuwabuki was left waiting at the station after he arrived late in the afternoon.  
  
It was a nice town, he decided, if a little dull. The people were certainly polite and helpful, and the little restaurant beside the train station had excellent ramen.  
  
Around twilight, the thrum of an automobile engine roused him from his contemplation of a mathematics textbook, and he looked up to see an old blue convertible turn onto the road to the trainstation. He shut his textbook with a snap, and replaced it in his bag before standing and descending the steps to wait on the sidewalk.  
  
The car pulled to a stop. An older man of indeterminable age sat in the drivers seat. He looked quite strange to Tsuwabuki, with shoulder-length pink hair. His face was long and lean, all sharp angles, and his dark eyes seemed to bore into his soul as he stood beside the car.  
  
"Well? Are you or aren't you going to get in?" Sharp tone.  
  
"S-sorry, sir."  
  
"Sensei will do. I am Mikage Souji. You, I believe, are the young man the academy has asked me to ferry from town to school." The man's voice was cool dispassionate.  
  
"Yes, sensei." He heaved his bag into the back seat, and got in. The man shifted gears, then hit the gas. The car tore away down the road and away. Tsuwabuki's eyes widened briefly. The landscape sped by in a blur.  
  
"They say Ohtori is fifty miles away, but the road is rather twisting and strange." the professor said abruptly. "It's as if the island doesn't conform to the laws of physics."  
  
"I remember." Tsuwabuki said, looking out at the blurring scenery. "I was in second form at the academy."  
  
"Do you?" Mikage asked, glancing over at his passenger. Something in his eyes made Tsuwabuki shudder and look away. When he looked back, the professor's eyes were on the road again.  
  
"Honestly, no. It was a long time ago."  
  
Mikage chuckled, but said nothing. Tsuwabuki slanted a look at the man. But the professor's face was calm, composed, and completely unreadable. Somehow, the sign of emotion unnerved Tsuwabuki even more.  
  
"I suppose it's changed a lot since I was there." he ventured.  
  
"Not so as you'd notice." Mikage's reply seemed a bit acerbic to Tsuwabuki. He fell silent, then piped back up again.  
  
"I heard that there's a new deputy chairman." Tsuwabuki said suddenly. "Touga Kiryuu. Wasn't he on Student Council back when I was in second form."  
  
"Oh yes." Mikage's smile seemed strange somehow, as if he was in on a joke that Tsuwabuki hadn't the slighest clue of. "And his sister is a student at the school."  
  
"Sister...?" A wave of dizziness made Tsuwabuki sway in his seat. When it passed, he looked up to find Mikage looking at him with a sort of detached interest. The pink-haired man looked back at the road.   
  
"Yes, Nanami Kiryuu. Has her head in the clouds most of the time. A terrible student." A very long silence fell again as Mikage seemed to concentrate fiercly on the road, and Tsuwabuki tried to focus on the blurring scenery outside of the car. He'd long given up trying to find the speedometer on the strange convertible, and was occupying himself trying to figure out whether the green was trees or grass. Finally, he grew bored, summoned up his courage, and blurted out:  
  
"What do you teach?" Mikage looked at him, and once again, he felt as if he'd said something terribly stupid.   
  
"You might say that I am a professor of philosophy." Again, that irony in the professor's tone made shivers run up and down Tsuwabuki's spine. "I run seminars. Those truly interested are always welcome."  
  
"It sounds interesting." he heard himself say, as if from far away. The world felt detached as he rode in the strange car with the professor, but he could hear Mikage's words easily, as if the car were enclosed. The wind whipped his hair about, and Mikage's as well, but what had to have been a cold driving wind off of the ocean was reduced to a vague feeling of cold, and his hair going in every which direction.  
  
"Only the truly committed join my seminars." Mikage said. He was looking at Tsuwabuki again, and the teenager felt like a sudden weight had settled on him. "It takes a great deal of time, and energy, and courage."  
  
"I'd... have to think about it." Tsuwabuki gulped, and looked away, only to find that the convertible was coming to a stop by a fountain. They had arrived.   
  
"If you make up your mind..." Mikage pulled out a single ring. It was white, carved of some strange smooth stone, with a rose signet that matched the seal of the school set in it. "Come see me within five days time."  
  
Tsuwabuki took the ring automatically, and then he was out of the car, taking his bag, thanking the professor for the ride. He found himself wondering what had happened as he searched for his dormitory, and later concluded that he really didn't want to know.  
  
***  
  
He caught little glances of the girl as he traversed Ohtori, saw her turning corners, the back of her, never the front, never the face. He saw the strange rose crest ring on her hand, the graceful and lithe movement of her body, and the odd panther-like movement that seemed oddly familiar.  
  
He'd seen the white-haired President of the Student Council escorting her around, a hand on her elbow, gripping her and tugging her along, eyes wide and eager. Treating her as no girl ought to be treated. Like property.  
  
It wasn't right. Mitsuru couldn't remember why, but he knew that at least.  
  
He was so distracted by the girl that he almost forgot about his preoccupation with Mikage Souji, until he crossed paths with the forbidding professor, and the man gave him a look that seemed to see right into his soul. For a moment, Mitsuru had seen the man turning to walk towards him, but then, seized by an irrational impulse, the blonde student had stepped into his classroom.  
  
Mikage hadn't followed him.  
  
All and all, it was a very strange day for him. Between his wonderings about the girl and Mikage, he found himself standing on the broad road out of the central plaza of the school, facing the forest. The forest that he'd been admonished never to go into.   
  
As he stood, looking into the shadows of the forest, he heard two voices, raised. One of them, a girl's, and another, the voice of the Student Council President.   
  
"You can't do this, Yuki-san!"  
  
"Quiet! I'll do whatever I want, as champion. /You/ are mine, and you obey me."  
  
That decided him. Mitsuru headed into the forest, looking around, following a footpath. He heard fabric tearing, heard the girl gasp, and...  
  
He emerged before a set of white gates. Yuki stood over the girl who was so familiar, holding a piece of her uniform blouse in his hand.  
  
"Hey!" he shouted.   
  
Yuki whirled. "You! What are you doing in the Duelling Forest?" he demanded.  
  
"What are /you/ doing to her?" Mitsuru demanded, stepping forwards. The girl looked up, saw him, and her eyes widened.   
  
"Whatever I please. It's no business of yours."  
  
"I don't think so. It's wrong, and I won't let you do it." Mitsuru insisted. "Leave her alone."  
  
Yuki laughed. "Or what? You'll challenge me to a duel? Please."  
  
"Sir, I don't think..." the girl began shakily.  
  
"Shut /up/, Nanami."  
  
Nanami. Nanami. The name was familiar. Too familiar, and Mitsuru was committed. "/You/ shut up. I'm not letting you touch her ever again, you slime."  
  
"Be careful who you insult, boy." The white-haired teenager dragged Nanami to her feet, and grabbed onto the gates, which, Mitsuru realized, were open just enough for him to slip through. He started forwards, then Yuki thrust Nanami through the gates and stood in the opening. "How about this. If you can get to her... you can challenge me to a duel. And if you win, you can have her." He sneered, then stepped back.  
  
The gates slammed shut.  
  
Mitsuru glared at them, walked right up to them, grabbed the handle, and yanked. The door remained obstinantly shut. Cursing, he yanked on the handle again. Stepping back, he stuck his hands in his pocket, and examined the gate.  
  
It had a swirled pattern on it, almost like a rose. A rose. His hand closed around the white ring, and he pulled it out of his pocket, and examined it. The material of the ring was a perfect, smooth, egg-shell white, and the crest resembled that of Ohtori Academy. He examined the ring for a moment, then slipped it onto his index finger, and grasped the handle with that hand.  
  
Something cold hit the ring, and he jerked his hand back, examining the rose. It was... wet?  
  
He only had a second to wonder however. Water poured out behind him, and he turned to see it pouring out of vine-covered aquaducts into stone gutters on the ground.  
  
Behind him, the gates opened, fog obscuring them out of nowhere for an instant. Then the fog cleared. The gate was open, and an immense stone rose stood atop them.  
  
Mitsuru lifted his hand to examine the seal again. It remained the same, albeit a bit wet. Shrugging, he walked through the gates. Before him were a spiralling set of white steps, leading up to something that obscured the sun. As he wondered where the other supports for the structure were, he looked up... and up... and up...  
  
"Oh..." he murmured, then cleared his throat. This had to be a joke. He hoped. But there were dusty footprints on the stairs, indicating that /someone/ had gone up.  
  
Grimacing, he set his foot on the first step, and began to long climb.  
  
Several stories later, he leaned against a pillar. The steps ended shortly, so he fought to catch his breath. Finally, he turned, and stepped up the last step, through the archway.  
  
It was an immense, round platform, with regular spikes around the edges. The seal of Ohtori Academy was lain out in white and red bricks beneath his feet.  
  
And in the center, stood Nanami, dressed in a red gown. Across from the gate stood Yuki.  
  
"Oho, so you managed to get in!" the white-haired teenager jeered. "No weapon, though. So sad. Nanami, attend to us."  
  
Mitsuru, took several steps forward, and Nanami produced two roses, one in each hand. The one she gave to Yuki was a pale purple rose, tucked carefully into his breast pocket. She stepped back, even as he reached for her, then turned and walked to in front of Mitsuru. Her eyes stared into his, and he thought something burned in them, before she held up his rose.  
  
It was black, and she said "Whoever loses their rose, loses the duel." As he watched, she tucked it into the pocket on his uniform, and walked back to stand before Yuki. She held her hands together, then they flashed apart, and she chanted "Roses of the Noble Shrines, power of Dios that sleeps within me, heed thy master and come forth!"   
  
Yuki stepped forwards as she swooned backwards, extending his arm to catch her, and, as Mitsuru watched disbelievingly, a ball of light bloomed on her chest, coalescing into a sword, which Yuki grasped the hilt of, and drew forth, declaring "Grant me the power to bring the world revolution!"  
  
He thrust Nanami aside, and she tripped on her skirts, falling aside. Mitsuru froze as Yuki lunged for him, then dove aside.  
  
"You're no duellist." Yuki laughed as Mitsuru scrambled back, eyes wide. "You don't even have a sword! This is going to be easy!" He dove after the scrambling blonde, a fierce grin on his face.  
  
Mitsuru hit the edge of the platform, and made the mistake of looking aside, at the ground. He gulped. It was a /long/ way down, he realized. Then he looked up, as Yuki bore down on him, and bent backwards as the sword came down...  
  
It was only by virtue of this that he came away alive. The sword slice down his cheek, leaving a jagged wound that /hurt/. Almost blinded by pain, Mitsuru, looked up, and saw it, as Yuki got his balance back. He only had a second... his leg lashed out, tripping Yuki, and he seized the rose as the duellist fell, the sword clattering to the plaza, yanking it out of Yuki's pocket.  
  
Somewhere, bells rang, and Yuki's shocked yell was lost among them. He rolled off of Mitsuru, turned his head, spit, then stalked off. Mitsuru closed his eyes for what seemed to be just a second, but when he opened them, Nanami was gone, and steps were sounding on the steps.   
  
Bruised by his fall, and his face hurting, Mitsuru sat up, looking around. The sword was gone. Nanami and Yuki had left. All that was left was the black rose in his pocket, and the pale purple rose that he was holding near the head.  
  
The sound of footsteps came to a halt, then, as Mitsuru squinted, he recognized Mikage walking briskly across the arena to him.  
  
"Do you need a hand up?" Mikage asked, leaning down and extending one.   
  
"Yeah. Thanks." Mitsuru took Mikage's hand with his left hand, and the professor hauled him to his feet.  
  
"Not bad, considering you weren't armed." Mikage observed, reaching up to touch the wound. Mitsuru winced as the finger traced it. "It's going to scar." the proffessor went on.  
  
"You... you saw that?"  
  
Mikage shrugged. "There's a spot from the school where you can see the duels, if you have binoculars."  
  
"How did you know..."  
  
"The bells ring whenever a duel begins, and whenever one ends. I got here in time to see you divesting the President of his rose. Neatly done. Here, give it to me." Mitsuru mutely handed it to the pink-haired man, and Mikage ripped the petals from it, letting them scatter on the wind. "The other one?"  
  
Mitsuru looked down at the black rose, and pulled it out. Mikage didn't rip the petals off, however, he merely took it. "Come. We have much to discuss." the pink-haired man said, and turning abruptly away, headed for the steps. Mitsuru hesitated. "Well?"  
  
The blonde duellist touched the wound on his face lightly, winced, and then followed Mikage down the steps of the duelling arena.  
  
  
End Part 2 


	3. First Moves

Title: Possession: Dark Time  
Authors: Phoenixflame and Sho-i Tanaka  
Rating: R  
Summary: Utena Tenjou graduated from Ohtori Academy four years ago. Now the duels have begun again... and things that should have been left sleeping have been woken up again. Rumors say that there's a revolution coming...  
Disclaimer: Utena is owned by Be-papas, Chiho Saito, and Ikuhara-sensei. The plot and ideas in Possession are property of the UDBB(Utena Deserves Better Brigade). This is a non-profit fic. Do not fold, spindle, or mutilate.   
  
  
I walked around my good intentions,  
And found that there were none.  
I blame my father for the wasted years  
We hardly talk  
Never thought I would forget this pain  
Then a phone call made me realize I'm wrong.  
  
-Our Lady Peace '4 AM'  
  
  
Chapter One: First Moves  
  
  
Mikage led him almost all the way across campus, to a building that seemed strangely familiar. Once inside, he led Mitsuru up the marble staircase, and into a lounge area. Mitsuru took in the stained glass windows, the comfortable chairs, and the first aid kit set out on the table in one glance, then turned to Mikage. "You knew?"  
  
"I suspected. And you don't have a sword yet. You're not wielding the Sword of Dios, either, if I have anything to say about it."  
  
"Sword of... the sword Yuki pulled out of..."  
  
Mikage gestured him into one of the seats, and said "Yes. The Sword of Dios. The power of Dios. The power to bring the world revolution. Is that what you are asking?" He opened the first aid kit, took out an alcohol swab, and began to wipe off the excess blood. Mitsuru winced. "Although, one could almost call it the Power of Tenjou. Congratulations. You're on your way to becoming a Prince. Or a Victor, at the very least" He taped a gauze bandage into place over the wound, and stepped back. Mitsuru watched in silence as Mikage threw the swab away, packed up the first aid kit, and stowed it in a cabinet.  
  
"Who is she?" he asked Mikage.  
  
"She is the Rose Bride. The Student Council duel for her... for the power she holds. The Power of Dios. The power to bring the world revolution." Mikage sat down. "Or do you mean the girl herself?"  
  
"Yes." he said, leaning forwards. "What's her name?"  
  
The professor watched him silently for a moment, then said "Nanami Kiryuu."  
  
"Kir..." There was something Mitsuru couldn't quite put his finger on. Something important. "The sister of the chairman?"  
  
"Exactly." Mikage looked obscurely pleased by this. "From this day forward, she will be your bride. She will tell you this herself, and she will move in with you." He fixed Mitsuru with a long, penetrating look. "But whatever you do, don't become close to her. You can't trust her. It's possible that you can't trust anyone here." He rose to his feet. "You should be getting back to your dormitory."  
  
"What if I get caught?"  
  
Mikage, halfway out the door already, paused and turned to face him. "You'll never get caught, Mitsuru." Turning, he left. The lights faded down into darkness. Eventually, Mitsuru rose from his seat and left the building.  
  
The walk across campus was made without seeing anyone. The eery silence and the play of shadows on the sidewalks seemed to slip by, time speeding up until he found himself in front of his single. He took his key out of his pocket, and in a rare feat of dexterity, unlocked the door without fumbling around with the key.  
  
Stepping inside, he shut the door, and looked down. One suitcase sat on the floor in the light from the window, and turning his head, he could see a sillhouette laying on the bed, dressed in a white nightgown.  
  
He flicked the light switch, and the shadow sat up, resolving itself into a blonde girl with her hair released from its pins, who looked at him with curious grey eyes, and said "Hello, Mitsuru-sama. My name is Nanami Kiryuu, and I am your Bride."  
  
Mitsuru flicked the lightswitch down again, plunging the room into darkness. "How did you get in here?" he asked her.  
  
She didn't answer, just sat as still as death, hands folded in her lap, eyes on him. He shook his head, and shrugged out of his uniform jacket. "In any case, you can't stay here. I only have a single." Nanami held up a white envelope embossed with the rose seal. Sighing, Mitsuru crossed the room and plucked it from her fingers. It was a letter from the dean of students, giving him a transfer to a double in the East Dormitory. Folding it back up, he set it on the shelf over the bed. "I don't have any place you can sleep tonight, I mean, I don't even have a rug in here."  
  
"I can sleep in your bed, with you." she volunteered simply, lifting one hand. Mitsuru's eyes followed it as it rose. He felt as if he couldn't look away. All at once, he wrenched his eyes away from her hand, and stared at her, blushing.  
  
"Wouldn't that be improper?" he asked, stammering slightly.  
  
"We are engaged, Mitsuru-sama." she said, rising from the bed. "I am your flower." She paused, something unreadable in her eyes, and then said in a rather waspish tone "I can sleep curled at your feet if it makes you feel better."  
  
"Er... well, if you think that's necessary..." Mitsuru walked over to the bed, and peeled back the covers, settling in under them with his back to Nanami. There was silence, and then he heard Nanami walk across the room. The bed creaked, and he felt something brush against his feet before the room went silent again.  
  
Mitsuru didn't fall asleep for a long time, and when he did, he had strange dreams of black roses and duelling arenas.  
  
***  
  
Kozue Kaoru was startled out of a doze by the sound of bells. Rolling over, she swatted at her alarm clock, turning off the alarm. But the bells kept ringing. She cracked open one eye, and stared at the window. It was dark outside. Glancing at the clock, she saw that it was sometime after midnight.   
  
*Why would the bells be ringing in the middle of the night?* she thought muzzily, pulling on a robe. As she did, her eye caught the ring on her hand, and she smiled sardonically. *Of course. A duel or a Student Council meeting. But which idiot called a meeting in the middle of the night?*  
  
Shaking her head, she let the robe drop to the floor, and went to her closet for her uniform. As she did, she passed the twin bed in the room. It was made up as it was every day... as it had been for a year, with white sheets and a blue blanket, and an empty milkshake glass on the nightstand beside it. A framed picture of her sat beside the milkshake glass. On the other side of the nightstand sat an alarm clock... and a picture of her brother.  
  
"Miki..." she murmured, pulling on the blue-trimmed uniform of the Student Council. "Where are you? I need you."  
  
In the distance, the bells stopped tolling, and were replaced by the normal sounds of the night. Kozue pulled on a tank top and pulled the uniform jacket on over it. She left it unbuttoned, and headed out the door. It was after hours at Ohtori Academy; she didn't need to adhere strictly to the student handbook.  
  
The pathways were completely empty. Curfew was in force, but no teachers ever seemed to be around to enforce it. Just in case, Kozue speeded up, jogging across the grass in front of the West Dormitory. Looking up at the second floor, she saw that there were no lit windows at all. The others must have discounted the bells, or simply gone back to sleep. But as Vice President, Kozue didn't have that luxury.  
  
*And so I'm risking my position to go to a meeting in the middle of the night.* she thought sardonically. *If it weren't for...* She turned the corner, and passed through the shadows between buildings, and into the long shadow of the Observatory Tower. Fishing a key out of her pocket, she headed over to the elevator, unlocked the gate, pushed it up, and stepped inside. The gate slid shut, and she pulled the lever for the balcony level. Leaning back against the wall of the cage elevator, she watched as the elevator began to ascend. After the second floor, the tower on one side became one long window, allowing her to look out over the campus while the elevator went up.  
  
After about a minute, the elevator stopped. Kozue slipped her key back into the pocket of her uniform, and stepped out of the elevator.  
  
The anteroom of the Student Council chamber was dark and cold as she made her way out to the balcony. Once she was out on the balcony, she spotted the letter on the small table, and a black cell phone.  
  
Glancing around warily, she walked the length of the balcony to the table, and picked up the letter. It bore the seal of End of the World. She broke the wax, and unfolded it. "As of midnight this day, Yuki Himitsu is summarily removed from Student Council for violations of the Code of the Rose Seal. Kozue Kaoru is to take his place. The next duellist will be Sora Hananobari. Congratulations to Miss Kaoru on her promotion."  
  
Kaoru set the letter down gingerly, and picked up the phone. It was wrapped with a blue ribbon. *No doubts about who it's from.* she decided, and flipped it open. She dialed the number of the Secretary of the Council by memory. The girl picked up on the fifth ring.   
  
"Hello?"   
  
"Mari, there's been an emergency meeting of Student Council called. Can you wake up everyone else and tell them to come up to the tower?"  
  
"Kozue, it's the middle of the night." Mari protested. Then she sighed. "Alright... gimme about ten minutes."  
  
"Right." Kozue shut the phone, and tucked it into a pocket. She eyed the uncomfortable looking chairs around the table, then walked over to one of the pillars and leaned back against it. *The night air feels so good... I don't get out here very often.* Turning her head, she stared out at the starry night sky. *I wonder what those look like in the telescope?* A fine shudder ran down her back. According to the Dean of Students, they were welcome to use the telescope if they wanted to, but something about the highest room in the tower made Kozue nervous.  
  
Thinking about it made the shadows seem to thicken, and the stars that had seemed so beautiful seemed to grow menacing. Kozue tensed. Was that a footfall she heard? *It must be Mari.* she decided. "Mari? Is that you?" she called.  
  
There was no answer. Kozue heard the footsteps now. They were coming closer. She reached for her hip, then remembered that she didn't normally carry her rapier with her. "Mari, this isn't funny." she said.  
  
A hand clapped down on her shoulder. Kozue gasped, and looked over to see green eyes staring at her intently.  
  
"Wake up." Anthy Himemiya said.  
  
"What?" she gasped.  
  
Anthy shook her shoulder... and Kozue blinked. Instead of Anthy, it was Mari holding her shoulder. "I said wake up." the Secretary said. "You fell asleep against the pillar."  
  
Kozue straightened. "Thank you." She buttoned up her uniform jacket. "Have you received any letters from End of the World?"  
  
Mari held up an unsealed letter. "It was tucked under my door." She stepped back, then walked to the table and tossed it down on top of Kozue's letter. "Congratulations, by the way." she said, her lips twisted in a false smile.  
  
"Thank you." Kozue murmured, and sat down in one of the unnoccupied chairs. "Yuki and the others are on the way?" she asked. Mentioning Yuki, she decided immediately after saying it, was a bad idea. Now Mari looked like she wanted to slap her.  
  
"I'm here." A slender figure with long garnet hair a shade darker than Mari's stepped out of the shadows. He was slender, almost effeminate with his garnet hair, but he was handsome rather than beautiful. He had a strange light in his eyes, and a slightly savage smile on his lips.  
  
Kozue didn't trust him at all, but for better or for worse, Sora Himitsu was the Treasurer of the Student Council. He was universally admired as one of the most handsome boys on campus, but Kozue had heard rumors of viciousness from former girlfriends, lovers, and casual aqquaintances. None, however, could eclipse the handsome appearance of the Treasurer, who wore the white pants and jacket of the Student Council... usually with the top two buttons undone when he wasn't in Council.  
  
"I tried to wake up poor Yuki... but alas, he seems to have turned into a pumpkin." he said, throwing himself down into one of the chairs. "And the Rose Bride isn't with him either. Which one of you girls is the lucky winner?" He arched one slender eyebrow, glancing at Mari, who shrugged and looked at Kozue.  
  
"Neither of you duelled Yuki?" she confirmed. A shrug and a nod from Sora confirmed this, and Mari just shook her head. "Then End of the World has failed to inform us that we have a new duellist."  
  
"Kaoru-san?" The slender blonde figure of the Rose Bride melted out of the shadows. Mari jumped in her seat. Sora blinked. Kozue, who was used to the strange goings on at Ohtori, merely waved Nanami forwards.  
  
"End of the World has directed me to inform you that Yuki-san is no longer welcome on the Student Council for his flagrant disregard of the Code of the Rose Seal." Nanami said, and bowed.   
  
"Then whose Bride are you?" Sora asked.   
  
"There is a new duellist. He won me from Yuki-san. If you'll excuse me, I must attend to the Victor." Nanami bowed again, then turned and walked back into the tower.  
  
"Nanami!" The Rose Bride didn't stop. Kozue growled in frustration. "Nanami, who is the Victor?"  
  
Nanami didn't answer. Somehow, this didn't surprise Kozue very much.  
  
"Well," Sora shrugged. "Is there any other business to attend to tonight?"   
  
"None." Kozue said.  
  
"None." Mari echoed her. The Secretary was staring out at the stars as she spoke.  
  
"Meeting adjourned."  
  
The elevator cage slammed shut.  
  
***  
  
The sound of bells woke Mitsuru up. He sat up in bed, and brushed his hair back with one hand. *Why am I still in my uniform?* he wondered fuzzily. Then he noticed the ring on his hand. *Oh. Right.*  
  
"Good morning, Mitsuru-sama." Nanami said politely, and held up a tray with breakfast on it. "Breakfast?"  
  
Mitsuru blushed faintly, and scrambled out of bed. "Can you please stop that? Calling me Mitsuru-sama, I mean."  
  
"Of course, Mitsuru-kun." the Rose Bride replied, and smiled. "Breakfast?"  
  
"Err, thank you." Mitsuru got out of bed and took the tray from her. "You don't have to do that if you don't want to. Thank you, but... I'm not used to being waited on, and it really makes me uncomfortable, so..."  
  
Nanami smiled. "Thank you, Mitsuru-kun. I'll remember that. You ought to put on a clean uniform, though. That one's a bit rumpled.  
  
"Err... right. Can you leave while I get dressed?"  
  
She smirked slightly, and did so. Blushing furiously, Mitsuru stripped off his uniform and let it fall to the ground, then got dressed quickly. Once he was dressed, he ate what was on the tray, and left the room.  
  
Nanami was leaning against the wall, staring out at the campus. He cleared his throat, and she straightened. "Shall we go to classes?" she asked brightly.  
  
Mitsuru winced faintly. "Do you really like doing this?" he asked.  
  
The smile melted away, and he saw something cold in her eyes before she smiled again, her eyes wide and sparkling. "I am the Rose Bride." Turning, she walked away down the hallway. Mitsuru followed her quietly, not asking any more questions.  
  
***  
  
"Tsuwabuki-san?"  
  
Mitsuru was distracted from his lunch by a tall, slim girl in the uniform of the Student Council. She had long rasberry-colored hair that was braided back into a single braid. He blinked up at her, and swallowed his rice. "Yes? I mean, that's me."  
  
"You don't remember me?" She slid into the seat opposite him at the table. Nanami, currently engaged in reading a magazine, looked up, then slid out of her seat, bowed, and walked away. "I'm Mari. Remember?"  
  
"Oh. Oh!" He slapped his forehead. "Mari-chan!"  
  
"Aren't /we/ being familiar." She laughed, and propped her chin up on her hand. Mitsuru's eyes were drawn to her hand, and the ring that sparkled on it. "So. What have you been up to?" she asked, then looked at where he was staring. "What's wrong, Suru-chan? You look like you just saw a ghost!"  
  
"You're a duelist." he said, and looked up at her face as the good-natured amusement drained out of her.   
  
She leaned back. "You know?"  
  
He lifted his hand. "Yes."  
  
Mari stared at his ring hand, her face expressionless. "I see." She stood. "We should have lunch together sometime." she suggested. "I'll leave my ring at home, and you can have the Rose Bride tend her roses. It'll be delightful, I'm sure." Turning on her heel, she walked away.  
  
Mitsuru stared after her. "...Mari?"  
  
***  
  
"She was supposed to duel him."  
  
Nanami stepped out of the elevator, hands clasped behind her back as she walked towards the sofa. "She didn't challenge him, onii-sama. They're old school friends."  
  
"School friends. I didn't /make/ him a duelist." Touga Kiryuu rose from the couch with a swift, easy movement. "Where did he get the ring, Nanami?"  
  
"I don't know. He came back late, though."  
  
"Plotting against me, no doubt."   
  
"Onii-sama?" Nanami stepped closer, lifitng one hand to touch his face. "Are you alright?"  
  
"I've been having dreams, Nanami-chan." he replied, capturing her hand in his own. "I killed him, but he won't go away. Sometimes I don't know whether I'm awake or sleeping now."  
  
"My poor brother." Nanami hugged him. He bore it silently, patting her head as he stared out of the windows at the campus. "Don't worry. Akio and his sister are dead. /You're/ End of the World now."  
  
"Am I?" He rested his chin against her hair. "Some days I think I have strings in me, Nanami, and these dreams are the hooks..."  
  
"Don't say that." she frowned.   
  
"But you understand that I had to do it." His arms closed around her tightly, and she let out a squeak of surprise. "I had to become the Prince, and a prince needs a bride. I know it hurts, but it's only for a little while." He tilted her chin up with one hand, and she stared into his eyes, not sure whether she believed him or not. "You won't have to be the Rose Bride much longer."  
  
"Promise?" she whispered.  
  
He smiled. "Promise."  
  
  
End Part Three 


End file.
